Archive for the ‘Ferrari’ tag

What to do with a non-operational show car? Stick it in a museum and call it a day? Splash some fiberglass copies off it and build some driveable copies? Or maybe get it running and put it on the road, as did the owner of this 1980 Ferrari Pinin four-door sedan for sale on Hemmings.com, which we last saw come up for sale at auction a few years back. Now fully functional as if Ferrari itself had built the car, the Pinin still looks rather fresh for a 35-year-old car and has an impressive resume of show appearances and museum exhibits. From the seller’s description:

presented to “Salone Internazionale dell’Automobile Torino” for celebrate the 50th years of Pininfarina, in the same year was presented to “Los Angeles Auto Show” and to Ing.Enzo Ferrari in Maranello.

The Ferrari Pinin is a one off, is the only one official Ferrari Limousine made untill today.

The car mounted engine 12 flat carburator of 5000cm in front position.The car untill 1993 stay in the Pininfarina Collection and after was bought from the Belgian Ferrari Collector Jacques Swaters of Garage Francorchamp.

In 2008 was sold to the current owner who, under the supervision, of Ing.Mauro Forghieri restore the car and put in running condition.

The car partecipate to some International Concours of Elegance, 2010 Goodwood Speed Festival, 2011 Concours of Trieste, exhibitions of Mauro Forghieri Modena Terra di Motori, was expose to Ferrari Museum in Maranello for “The Great Ferrari of Sergio Pininfarina” and also to Museo Casa Natale of Enzo Ferrari, Uniques Special Ones in SanktPetersburg Russia and Pininfarina 85.

The Ferrari Pinin is equipped with two engine: one the original not running and other running currently mounted, all two engine are 12 flat carburator 5000cm.

Available all documentattions about history, restoration, presentations and running conditions.

In January of 2015, Ford announced that an all-new Ford GT supercar would be hitting dealer showrooms in late 2015 as a 2016 model. In June, at Le Mans, it confirmed the worst-kept secret in the automotive world: in 2016, on the 50th anniversary of the Ford GT40’s 1-2-3 podium sweep at the storied endurance race, the Ford GT will once again take to the track, competing against Ferrari (and Corvette, Aston Martin and others) in the LM GTE Pro class. But why isn’t Ford calling its latest supercar the GT40, in recognition of the original’s achievements?

To understand the full story, it’s best to start from the beginning. In 1963, Ford came very close to purchasing a majority share in Ferrari, in a deal originated by Lee Iacocca. While price was one obstacle (Ferrari wanted $18 million, but after performing its due diligence Ford would only offer $10 million), the stumbling block became racing activity. Enzo Ferrari was more than willing to concede the manufacturing of street cars to Ford, but when it came to racing, Ferrari expected–demanded, actually–the right to race where and when he chose.

At the Nürburgring in 1964, the Ford GT’s first race outing.

As reported in the World Registry of Cobras & GT40s, Fourth Edition, Ford’s Don Frey was tasked with closing the deal between the two companies. In what was expected to be the final meeting before an agreement was reached, Enzo Ferrari raised the only question that truly mattered to him.

“If I wish to enter cars at Indianapolis and you do not wish to enter cars at Indianapolis,” Enzo reportedly asked, “do we go or do we not go?”

“You do not go,” stated Frey, to which Ferrari replied, “It was nice to know you.” There would be no deal, despite later efforts from Ferrari to reopen negotiations. Once slighted, Henry Ford II was not a man to show mercy.

Instead, Ford directed his team to build a racing program capable of beating Ferrari at Le Mans. Knowing that a true blank-slate start would take far too long, the program centered on the Lola Mk6 GT as a testbed for development, and the first Ford GT was born.

Ford GT40s finish first, second and third at Le Mans in 1966.

Introduced to the public in April of 1964, two months ahead of its first appearance at Le Mans, the Ford GT certainly looked the part of a competitive race car. Internally, Ford referred to the car (and the program to win at Le Mans) as the GT40, a reference to the car’s height (which, in actuality, measured 40.5 inches). Even the chassis tags for the first 12 prototypes constructed used only the GT/101 – GT/112 reference, further indication that the Ford GT was to be the car’s name.

Its debut appearance at Le Mans in 1964 proved disappointing, with all three cars entered by Ford retiring prior to the end of the race, finishing no higher than 29th in the overall standings. Following the 1964 race, however, “GT40″ became the car’s accepted name in the public eye, and to ensure that the program remained on track to deliver a victory in 1965, Carroll Shelby was brought in to replace John Wyer.

Even Shelby couldn’t turn the program around for 1965. Despite a total of six GT40s in the field (including a roadster entered by Ford of France), none finished the race for a second year in a row. Worse, the highest-placing car, a Shelby American GT40 Mk II, finished in 36th place after completing a mere 89 laps.

Things changed for 1966. Combined, Ford and privateer teams entered a staggering 13 GT40s at Le Mans, and Shelby had had ample time to sort out the cars’ development issues. Ford’s podium sweep sent a clear message to Ferrari that its days of dominating the sport of endurance racing were over, and the American manufacturer backed up its swagger with consecutive victories at Le Mans from 1967-’69.

The 1967 Le Mans-winning GT40 Mk IV.

By then, the GT40’s time in the sun was over. In 1968, the FIA banned the 7.0-liter V-8, forcing Ford to revert to an under 5.0-liter V-8 (which still served up wins in 1968 and 1969). The lighter Porsche 917s were proving more nimble in the corners, and once reliability (now a strong point of the GT40) was no longer an issue, the Porsches would prove unbeatable. By the 1970 season, Ford’s GT40 program was largely over, though privateer cars would carry the torch in lesser races for years to come.

Ford closed the book on that chapter in its automotive history, and, surprisingly, failed to trademark the GT40 name. In 1985, Safir Engineering, a company that had been building replica GT40s since 1981, trademarked the GT40 name to distinguish its own products from other replicas on the market. When Safir Engineering was closed in 1999, naming rights were transferred to Safir GT40 Spares, Limited, a company that sells replacement parts for original GT40 models.

Ford’s Jim O’Connor announces that the 2003 Ford GT40, later called the Ford GT, will see production.

Fast-forward to 2002, when Ford revealed the GT40 supercar concept at the Detroit Auto Show in January. Meant as an homage to the original and a celebration of Ford’s 100th year in business, the GT40 concept received glowing reviews from both consumers and the automotive press. Six weeks after its auto show debut, Ford announced that the GT40 would see production, at least in limited quantities. For those unable to afford the car’s estimated $150,000 price of entry, Ford also planned to produce GT40 clothing, luggage, jewelry and other merchandise.

Initially, negotiations with Safir GT40 Spares, Ltd., went well enough. The two companies agreed on a limited-use license for the GT40 name on the concept, but in October of 2002, Ford suddenly dropped all references to the upcoming car as the GT40. It would simply be called the Ford GT, as that was to be the official name of the original car shown in 1964.

The 2016 Ford GT, in street trim.

Automotive News tells a slightly different tale, however. When Ford approached Safir to negotiate a licensing deal for the GT40 name on production variants, the company’s opening request was reported to be $40 million, a fee that would have added another $9,900 to the production cost of each of the 4,038 Ford GT’s built. Perhaps sensing the two companies were continents apart in pricing and terms, Ford reverted to the original name of the car instead of returning to the negotiating table.

It’s not clear if Ford reopened dialogue with Safir prior to the announcement of its latest GT, which seems several steps away from the original’s styling. It’s also distant from the uncluttered lines of the last Ford GT, so perhaps its best to not revisit the past in this case.

Best-in-Show Pre-War went to the 1913 Mercedes 37/95 owned by The Nethercutt Collection. Photos courtesy San Marino Motor Classic.

The idea of a supercar, developed without regard to cost to produce the maximum performance attainable from a road-going automobile, is nothing new. While today the term is defined by the now out-of-production Bugatti Veyron, in 1913 the Mercedes Model 37/95 would have been considered the ultimate supercar. At last weekend’s fifth-annual San Marino Motor Classic, a Labourdette-bodied Mercedes 37/95 Double Phaeton-Torpedo from the Nethercutt Collection took Best-in-Show Pre-War honors, besting an impressive array of contenders for the title.

The 1913 Model 37/95 was the evolution of the 1911 Mercedes Model 37/90. As was the case in the early days of the automobile, numerical designations generally had more meaning than simple marketing, and in the case of the Mercedes the first number represented taxable horsepower, while the second number indicated actual horsepower.

More impressive, perhaps, was the 581-cu.in. four-cylinder engine that produced that 95 horsepower. Calling it massive is a bit of an understatement, with each cylinder having a bore slightly wider than 5 inches and a stroke just over 7 inches. Fuel was fed via a Mercedes-designed sliding piston carburetor through a single intake valve that measured nearly 3.4 inches across; the engine exhaled through a pair of exhaust valves that each measured two inches across.

A gated four-speed shifter sat outside the cockpit, delivering a top speed of 70 MPH for most 37/95 variants. Those fitted with lightweight bodies (and, perhaps, different gearing) could reportedly achieve a speed of 100 MPH, a terrifying prospect given the roads and tires of the day. To ensure the Mercedes was capable of slowing from such velocities, the dual transmission brakes were water-cooled.

This particular 1913 37/95 was delivered new to a buyer in Paris, who contracted with Parisian coachbuilder Henri Labourdette to craft a dual phaeton-torpedo body. The car was reportedly used throughout World War I, escaping serious harm, but was buried in the buildup to the Second World War to ensure its safekeeping.

Acquired by the Nethercutt Collection in 1984, the car was completely restored from 2000 to 2001, when it debuted with a class win at Pebble Beach. In the years since, it’s been shown at numerous concours events across the United States, frequently capturing awards with each appearance. In 2015 alone, the Mercedes has earned Best-in-Show at March’s Benedict Castle Concours d’Elegance, followed by a class win at the 2015 Amelia Island Concours d’Elegance.

Best-in-Show Post-War went to Don Williams’s 1950 Ferrari.

Best-in-Show Post-War honors at this year’s San Marino Motor Classic went to a 1950 Ferrari 195 owned by Don Williams of Danville, California. For a complete list of 2015 winners by category, visit SanMarinoMotorClassic.com.

The Ferrari 225S at Thompson, Connecticut, owned and driven here by Adrian Melville. He raced the car as #9 at Thompson in September 1954, finishing 1st overall in race 8 and 7th overall, 1st in class in race 11. Photo by Ozzie Lyons, courtesy Pete Lyons.

[Editor’s Note: While the Ferraris making headlines for multimillion-dollar auction sales these days might have Maranello V-12s under their hoods, they didn’t always. Many of the ones exported to the United States suffered engine breakdowns or proved just too costly to maintain, so the hot rodders here in the States transplanted what they had sitting around—mostly Chevrolet small-block V-8s—to continue racing the Ferraris. Enough prancing horses got Chevrolet power to fill an entire book, which was just what author Randy Cook did with his Bowtie Ferraris: Chevy-engined Ferraris from the 1950s and 60s. Randy sent over chapters on a few such cars for us to peruse. For more information on the book, visit RACMotorsportsPublishing.com or the Bowtie Ferraris page on Facebook.]

0024 – 166 MM: Numero Uno
This is the earliest known Ferrari to later be re-engined with a Chevy V-8. It was the 1949 Paris Motor Show car presented in Argentine racing colors, bright blue with yellow, and was delivered to the Automobile Club of Argentina in November 1949. Charles Menditeguy drove it to first overall in the Mar del Plata road racing in January 1950. The car then returned to Italy and finished eighth in class in the 1951 Mille Miglia. The next month it was sold to Aprile Palmer of Novara, Italy, who drove it to eleventh overall in the Susa-Moncensio hillclimb in July 1951.

In 1953 it was re-bodied by Vignale as a coupe. It was repainted tri-tone, white, over blue, over grey and was purchased by Theodore Pala of Los Angeles. Pala subsequently had mechanical problems with the car and removed the engine and drivetrain. In August 1958, he sold it to Donald Oreck, also of Los Angeles, for $2,500. Shortly thereafter, Warren Olson, who later was the chief mechanic for the Scarab team, installed a Corvette 283 V8 drivetrain in the car. A story covering the car’s history and re-engine work was documented in an article by Wayne Thomas in the July 1959 issue of Motor Trend magazine.

The car was driven around the Southern California area for several years by three different owners, and then sold to New Yorkers Stanley Nowak and Gary Schonwald in 1974. Soon after buying the car, Schonwald bought the original engine, gearbox and rear end, had the Vignale body removed and sold it. Schonwald had a template body buck constructed from another 166 MM and sold it along with the chassis and drivetrain to Keith Duly of Connecticut who had a complete restoration of the car done from 1986-89, with a reconstructed body and rebuilt engine.

0024 as it appears today. Photo copyright Hugues Vanhoolandt.

The restored car changed hands several times from 1990, going from California to Japan, to Utah, and back to California. It was shown at the Quail Motorsports Gathering in August of 2010 and was sold at the RM Arizona auction in January 2011 for $1.87 million to Leslie Wexner of New Albany, Ohio.

0218 – 225 S: Movie Hot Rod
0218 was a Vignale spyder, imported in the U.S. by Alfred Momo of New York in 1952 and sold to early Ferrari racer William Spear of Manchester, New Hampshire. In October 1952, Spear raced the car in the Sowega National Sports Car races at Turner Air Force Base (AFB) in Albany, Georgia, where he placed fifth overall and first in class.

In March 1953, Spear and Phil Hill drove it in the 12 Hours of Sebring, but retired the car after 53 laps due to differential and brake issues. During the remainder of 1953, the car ran in six races, including Thompson, Connecticut; Lockbourne AFB, Ohio; Turner AFB, Georgia, and Ft. Worth NGB, Texas. The car achieved several class wins and one overall win, driven by Spear, Sherwood Johnston and William Lloyd.

A rare family photo of Bill Spear, his dog and 0218 at home circa 1953. Photo courtesy Steven Spear.

In 1954, the car was sold to Adrian Melville of Florida. He continued to race it in SCCA National sports car events at Hunter AFB, Georgia; Andrews AFB, Maryland; and Thompson, Connecticut, where he had a first overall finish in September 1954. In 1955, the car was sold to Robert Williams, who raced it in the 1955 Bahamas Speed Weeks in Nassau. The car then disappeared for quite a while, but reportedly was drag raced and used in movies in Hollywood, California.

In the early 1980s, Steve Morse of Los Angeles reportedly bought it from a Hollywood moviemaker in “junkyard condition,” without the Chevy engine it had in it for drag racing. It was described as having a seat frame, suspension, no instruments, the wrong rear end and a body. Morse then sold it to Gary Schonwald of New York, who had the original engine. The car was restored in 1982, and then purchased by Ron Pinto of Palos Verdes, California.

At the 2003 Mille Miglia. Photo copyright Hugues Vanhoolandt.

From 1989 until 1997, the car traveled from Bellevue, Washington, to Southport, Connecticut, then to England and Argentina. It competed in Mille Miglia events in 1999, 2000, 2003 and 2005.

0718 – 250 TR: Historic Race Veteran
This was a customer car, completed in November 1957. In 1958, it was sold to Julio Mariscal of Mexico City, but due to a customs issue involving a very expensive duty, it was reshipped to John and Eleanor von Neumann of Los Angeles for resale. It was driven in the 1959 Riverside SCCA national race by Pedro Rodriguez, but did not finish due to ignition issues. Shortly after that it, was purchased by Gordon Glyer of Sacramento, California, who drove it to eighth place in the October 1959 Times Grand Prix at Riverside. Glyer raced the car a few times in 1960 and 1961 at California tracks, with his best finish a first at Sacramento in May 1961. In June 1961, he crashed the car at Laguna Seca, which damaged the front suspension.

Pedro Rodriguez at Riverside, 1959. Photo courtesy Allen Kuhn.

In an interview with the author, Glyer said when he first got the car in August 1959, it was white. After a few races, he repainted the car red, which he felt was a more appropriate color for a Ferrari. Glyer recalled that he removed the engine in 1962 and sold the car to Jack Wilke of Sacramento, California, for $5,000. Wilke installed a Chevy V8 engine and drivetrain. Wilke occasionally drove the car on the street, and in 1966, he sold the seldom-used car to Wayne Swart of Sacramento for $2,500. Swart also drove it very little and then sold it to James Keller in 1971 for $2,500. Glyer sold the Ferrari engine to Tracy Bird of Arizona, who put it in a Cooper Monaco in 1965. According to Glyer, the car was never raced by Wilke, Swart or Keller.

Above, Glyer with 0718 working on the Ferrari engine in the pits at Vacaville, September 20, 1959. Below, again at Vacaville, where Glyer finished 3rd overall. Photos courtesy Gordon Glyer.

William Chizar of San Francisco, California, acquired the car in 1974 for $8,000, without its engine, and began an eight-year restoration, once he obtained the car’s original transmission and an engine from 0750. Beginning in 1984, the car competed in historic race and rally events under his and Bob Baker’s ownership, including the Mille Miglia, Monterey Historics and Colorado Grand. Chizar had the car painted silver with a red stripe to honor the von Neumann heritage.

Glyer at Sacramento in 1961. He finished first overall. Photo courtesy Webb Canepa.

In 1992, the original engine was reunited with the car and it was sold for $2,800,000 to Brandon Wang of Hong Kong. Wang raced it in several international historic events in Europe, England and the U.S., from 1992 until October 1998, when the car was sold, reportedly for $5.5 million, to Lawrence Stroll of Montreal, Canada. Stroll has displayed the car and raced it in many historic events in Florida and California, and competed in the Historic Monaco Grand Prix, the Mille Miglia and the Goodwood Revival Meeting. The car has competed in over 25 historic races, and is the subject of a 340-page book written by S. Scott Callan, titled Metal Memory, The Mystery of 0718. It was displayed with the group of 20 Testa Rossas at the 2014 Pebble Beach Concours.

Today in the von Neumann team colors at Pebble Beach 2014, with 0724 right beside it. Photo copyright Tim Scott.

* Hot rodder, race car builder, designer, driver: Larry Shinoda did it all, and while he’s best known for the Corvette Stingray split-window coupe or the Boss Mustang these days, he had plenty more accomplishments over his life and career, as enumerated in this short video on Shinoda by the Japanese American National Museum. (via)

* Matthew Lange was always supposed to inherit his father’s 1973 Ferrari 365 GTB/4 Daytona, but his father decided to give it to him well before he died so that Matthew could enjoy it, and he has done so ever since, as this week’s Petrolicious video shows.

* Finally, big rigs must have been all over the made-for-TV movie scene in the early Seventies. There was Duel, the most famous of them, but there was also this 1973 pickle, “Hijack!” which starred the guy from the Fugitive and the guy from, well, a million TV show appearances.

Here’s the thing about replicars like this 1989 Modena Designs 250 Spyder California for sale on Hemmings.com: Though they may not be the real thing, and though they get a lot of grief from aficionados of the real thing, they still fill a niche, as we can see from the fact that they were produced in multiples and sold to customers who knew exactly what they were looking for – it’s not like the buyers didn’t know that these cars were replicas. This one in particular looks to have been well maintained and probably screams down the road with its built Ford V-8 and fiberglass body. From the seller’s description:

these cars were originally built for the “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off” movie, those were not original Ferrari Cal Spyders in the movie, this car is #36 of 50 made by Modena Designs, 12411 miles, titled in 1989, VIN 9K88289T0036, Red exterior over beige leather interior, Engine is high performance Ford 289 V-8 Hoehns and Eanes Nascar type racing engine, 375-400 HP as previously tested on a dynometer, Borg/Warner 5-speed transmission, frame is semi-monocoque steel racing structure, unibody construction consisting of hand laid fiberglass impregnated with steel cowl bracing, power assisted rack and pinion steering, vented front and rear disc brakes, rear suspension is four trail inks with pan hard rod adjustable coil over Alden racing shocks and rear unequal length A-arms with adjustable coil over Alden racing shocks, Nardi steering wheel, Daytona knock-off hubs, welcomed at local Ferrari events, this car is in excellent condition, looks and drives great

Price: $104,500 Location: New Braunfels, Texas
Status: No Longer Available

* What looks like a Ferrari on an Alpine highway is neither a Ferrari nor anywhere near the Alps. Instead, it’s a much cooler story: that of panelbeater Rod Tempero, who turns out highly crafted replica bodies – including the one of the 1962 Ferrari 250 GTO above – without blueprints out of a chicken shed in Oamaru, New Zealand.

* It’s a stretch to call the vehicle in Laurel and Hardy’s “Great Guns” a jeep, but Hollywood – keen to depict World War II as the country entered it – didn’t have access to real jeeps, and besides, how many in the public had seen one to tell the difference?

* Speaking of props, the DeLorean DMC-12 is much more than a time-travel flick’s plot vehicle, as reiterated in this week’s Petrolicious video, which looks at how one DMC-12 owner decided to head in another life direction thanks in part to his DeLorean.

* What happens when you throw George Barris, Frankie Avalon and Annette Funicello at the same flick, but try to steer them away from the beach-party formula? You get the 1966 movie “Fireball 500,” featuring a heavily customized Barracuda in, essentially, a barely disguised Frankie and Annette beach party flick.

With Fiat Chrysler Automobiles moving ahead and positioning Ferrari to be a separately traded company, Piero Ferrari, Enzo Ferrari’s only living son, recently was quoted as saying that the Ferrari family has no interest in divesting its share of the company.

On Wednesday, February 18, during an event at the Museo Enzo Ferrari in Modena honoring the legacy of Luciano Pavarotti (a Modena native), Piero Ferrari, a vice chairman of the sports car maker since 1988, said, “I have never sold and I have no intention of doing so.”

The Ferrari family holds the 10 percent of Ferrari not currently owned by FCA. Sergio Marchionne, FCA chief executive and Ferrari chairman, has said that he wants to complete the Ferrari spinoff in 2015, with some indications as soon as the second quarter. The plan is to float 10 percent of the company in an initial public offering and then distribute the remaining FCA-held shares to FCA shareholders.

While a lot of Ferrari’s sky-high valuation has the carmaker being pegged as a luxury products brand in the same vein as Louis Vuitton or Hermes and beyond simply being a carmaker, the likely net effect will help finance FCA’s ambitious product plans over the next several years, which will not come cheap, even as profits have been on the rise in recent years with the recovery of the automotive market, which is just now reawakening in Europe after a long slumber following the Great Recession.

The planned Ferrari IPO and overall market recovery have done wonders since FCA itself debuted on the New York Sock Exchange just a few months ago, the shares rising an impressive 49 percent. But Ferrari’s roughly $9 billion current valuation puts the relatively tiny—but profitable—sports car maker’s market valuation at nearly half that of FCA itself. And FCA’s revenues absolutely dwarf those of Ferrari. And though Ferrari is a bit player in the overall worldwide automobile market, it remains, undeniably, the most prestigious nameplate, and that alone will add significant luster as buyers line up to snatch up a cut of the company in the coming months.

The likely net effect, if the remaining 80 percent share in Ferrari not floated in the IPO nor held by Piero Ferrari and his family stays in the hands of FCA’s biggest shareholders, will mean business as usual at Ferrari in the near term, at least. After all, if John Elkann, chairman of FCA and also great-great-grandson of Fiat founder Giovanni Agnelli, runs the most powerful block of shares in FCA, then it stands to reason that his family will also own the most important chunk in Ferrari. Likewise, Marchionne himself, who owns approximately 0.5-percent of FCA’s shares with options to obtain an additional one-percent, will likely take a piece of Ferrari with him when he retires in a few years, if he so chooses.

The machinations have not quite played out regarding the future of Ferrari, and while Marchionne wants to build a few more cars per year to maximize revenues and profits, there is no indication that volumes will increase to the point where a Ferrari will become truly common.

So, while the regulatory authorities have to sift through all of FCA’s and Ferrari’s filings before the seemingly now inevitable IPO plays out, Ferrari as a car company seems likely to change little in the coming years.

As expected, this year’s Cavallino Classic, considered by some to be the world’s premier event dedicated to honoring Ferraris, was outstanding. For the 24th year in a row, this all-prancing-horse concours continues to amaze, with many of the rarest and most beautiful Ferraris ever built, many of which are only shown at the Cavallino Classic.

This extraordinary event is presented by Cavallino magazine, the bi-monthly Journal of Ferrari History. Called “A convention of automotive enthusiasts,” this four-day event begins on Thursday with track sessions at nearby Palm Beach International Raceway. Both vintage and new Ferraris compete throughout that day and Friday.

Saturday is show time, where the spectacular Ferrari-only concours takes place on the front lawn of the Breakers hotel, right on the waterfront in Palm Beach. It’s a setting that is truly amazing, the kind of location that makes you feel special just being there. And if that isn’t enough, Sunday is the equally spectacular European Classics concours at the nearby Mar-a-Lago Club, where, once again, vintage Ferraris take center stage.

The primary focus of the Cavallino Classic is Saturday’s concours, with this year’s show honoring the 60th anniversary of the Ferrari 375 competition cars. Here’s a sampling of just some of the many rare, historic and simply beautiful automobiles that proudly wear the yellow prancing horse badge.

In 1989, the death of his father forced Toronto’s Patrick Sinn to return to his native Hong Kong for an extended visit. Suspecting he’d be gone for six months or more, Patrick covered his 1971 Ferrari 365 GTB/4 Daytona and placed the car up on blocks in the parking garage of his downtown condominium. Though he made it back to Toronto in 1995, the Ferrari remained in its undisturbed state (becoming something of an urban legend in the process) until November of 2014, when Patrick made the difficult decision to offer his “condo find” Ferrari to its next owner at RM’s upcoming Amelia Island sale.

Returning from a 1971 ski trip to Chamonix, France, Patrick’s flight from Geneva was delayed. Looking for a way to kill time, he opted to spend the day at the Geneva International Auto Show, where he first encountered Ferrari’s stunning 365 GTB/4 Daytona coupe, launched in 1968. Captivated, Patrick inquired about purchasing one of his own, but quickly realized that visiting Ferrari’s offices in Modena would give him the ability to order a car configured to his specifications, and would likely lead to the fastest possible delivery time. Changing his travel plans, Patrick made the trek from France to Italy to order his new Daytona.

Selecting Bordeaux Red with a metallic base for the exterior and two-tone leather for the interior, Patrick ordered the car for European delivery, purchasing a supply of spare parts and consumables to go with it. In July of 1971, Ferrari advised him that chassis 14385 was ready for delivery, so Patrick flew to Europe and spent the next month exploring the continent before returning the Daytona to Ferrari for its initial service. Accompanying the car on its journey to North America aboard the QE2, Patrick reportedly made daily inspections of his prized coupe to ensure that no damage had occurred in the previous 24 hours.

Crossing the border from the United States into Canada, Patrick encountered his first obstacle, in the form of a Canadian Customs agent, who informed him the car did not meet safety and pollution requirements and therefore could not be brought into the country. Negotiations ensued, and after posting a bond in the required amount, Patrick was cleared to cross the border in his Daytona.

Over 18 years, Patrick racked up 93,594 kilometers (58,157 miles) in the Ferrari, confessing that he was once clocked at 180 km/h (112 MPH) behind the wheel. When his father died in 1989, he knew it would take several months to wrap up business and settle the estate, but six months turned to six years before Patrick returned to Toronto. Busy catching up on other things in his life, the Ferrari sat undisturbed in the parking garage of his condo, wrapped in its protective cloak and resting on concrete blocks, for the next 19 years.

Last month, Patrick came to the realization that it was time to pass along his one-owner Ferrari to its next caretaker. It’s been “returned to running condition,” to quote RM, but the auction house is quick to point out that additional mechanical reconditioning will be necessary to return the car to driver status. For the right buyer, however, this will serve as a plus and not a minus, as very few hands have ever spun wrenches on the Daytona’s 4.4-liter, 352-horsepower V-12 engine or its chassis.

Therein lies the beauty of this particular Ferrari. Its paint may no longer be pristine, and it’s likely that numerous mechanical systems will need servicing or rebuilding before the Daytona can be truly enjoyed, but the car comes sans mystery, and hence, sans doubt. This peace of mind comes at a price, and RM is predicting a selling price in excess of $600,000 when the Ferrari crosses the block at Amelia Island next March.

The Amelia Island sale will take place on March 14, 2015, at the Ritz-Carlton resort in Amelia Island, Florida. For additional details, visit RMAuctions.com.

UPDATE (16.March): The 1971 Ferrari 365 GTB/4 Daytona sold for a fee-inclusive price of $770,000.